Once Cold, Twice Hot
by nadiamirah
Summary: You were to replace your country to meet a representative of another. Does it go smoothly like you wanted it to or will hearts drop from the sky? England x Reader. ONE SHOT; FIRST TRY.


**Hi everyone! Sorry I haven't been posting anything lately. I meant to post on Christmas but the fic I was working on is not finished yet! It'll be up somewhere this year, I promise.**

**So, I've been meaning to try a hand at Reader fictions for a while but whenever I start to write one, it just doesn't seem quite right. Even though I have so many ideas, I never got around to finish one. So, I beat myself up and FINALLY finished one of the many! Here it is, for all to see how badly I failed at this! Not to mention the title that does not have anything to do with the actual story!**

**Also, if you haven't checked your calendars yet, it's almost past Valentines' Day where I'm currently residing. So, if you haven't met 14th of February yet then great! This is my gift to you! If you have and had waved goodbye to it...well, nothing wrong with a late present right?**

**I really hope you do know how Reader fics work. If you don't, ((where on Fanfiction have you been)) it's pretty simple. If you see a bolded taunt like (Favourite Colour), do as it says. It should work.**

**Enough of me. You are reading, "Once Cold, Twice Hot", a England x Reader fanfiction.**

* * *

It was rather hot in the usually cloud-dusted capital of Britain today. You could finally see the pavement in front of you easily this time, not having to rely on the person strutting in front for the bendy ways around London. You loosened your scarf around your neck with a pent-up sigh. It was rather useless now, so you decided to bunch it up off your shoulders and stuff it in your **(Favourite Colour) (Bag Type)** bag as you stared up to the grey-tinged blue sky above you.

You were in London for a reason. You were supposed to meet the Britain representative to settle some trading matters between this sophisticated country and your own. The President of **(Country)** must have been crazy to send you instead of the actual country persona, but considering that **(Country)** had loads of other matters on his shoulders, guess it's only appropriate that his boss sent you, the secretary, in his place instead. You did put up quite the debate, raising your concerns. For example, you had no idea how it was supposed to go or how you're supposed to act in front of him. Alas, you lost against the union and they had sent you to begin packing your bags without another word.

You took out a piece of cue card from the pocket of your long **(Colour)** coat. Scribbled on the faint blue lines was the name of the cafe you were supposed to meet this Britain representative. You looked around. Luckily for you, you spotted the cafe just across the street. Rejoicing, you happily skipped across the empty road towards its doors. Strange that this cafe was located on one of the prestigious streets in the SoHo area. The roads that led here from your hotel were crowded with cars so you had decided to alight and walk the rest of the way. Thank the friendly cab driver and his explicit directions that you did not get lost. You smiled to yourself, silently thanking Mr. Driver as you raised a hand to push open the large, white Victorian doors of the cafe.

Just as you were about to exert your strength, a hand reached out from behind the frosted glass paved on the door and pulled it open for you, causing you to trip forward. A similar lean, bony hand then shot out before your eyes, hooking itself around your forearm and pulled you against gravity and upright once again. Your **(Eye Colour) **irises flicked upwards towards your saviour. Glistening meadow-green ones stared back into your own, worry and relief etched into their contours. His scarlet red bangs hung low from his hair line, partially covering his right eye. The irises scrutinised your form closely before the man's pale pink lips pulled into a wide smirk.

"Ya 'arite?" he asked, a hybrid of English accent and cowboy twang coating his words. It took you a second to realise what he was saying, and you nodded in reply, smiling back. The man, whom you noted was clad in a white and baby blue wedding-style outfit, put on a wider smirk and led you into the cafe, pulling the doors wider open and guiding you in with a hand on your waist.

The cafe was very simple looking. A large crystal chandelier hung from the ceiling above, like frozen snowflakes dusting a worn out fountain. The walls were painted with stripes in white and the lightest of blues you had ever seen. The tables were another sight. The four sides of the ivory, perfectly square, petite tables **[A/N: Oh Goddess I'm so sorry...]** were carved in with an intricate lacy design and the middle section was replaced by frosted glass. The chairs shared the same theme as the tables, completing the cafe with a spacious, casual look. You felt that you could actually breathe in this store. You sigh at the sights. This is so different from the cafes you were in when meeting the representatives of Spain and France.

The red-headed man behind you chuckled, "Like what ya see, ain't that right?" He settled his hand on your shoulder, "I made this cafe here, so spare me the hullaballoo about the nice interior design, 'cause I know it can please even the bitchiest Frenchman!"

You giggle slightly at his self-centered remark, "Yes, it's absolutely wonderful."

Just as your host was about to reply, his eyes immediately shot to their corners, as if suddenly distracted. You follow their gaze, and chanced upon a blond striding right towards the both of you. Similar hued green irises were fixed upon the red-head's own pair, hard and glittering as if real emeralds were slotted into his eye sockets. High cheekbones, accentuated eyebrows and pointed nose made up this man's frontal features. His tousled, sand-hued hair seemed to glow a bright gold in the light, fitting with the emerald eyes like lost treasure. A peek of a casual white long sleeved button-up collar could be seen from below a navy blue sleeveless V-neck, bringing out his lean build. A black belt with a brand logo you didn't recognise embossed on the buckle supported the waistband of a weathered down pair of ebony jeans. Its pockets were filled with the blond's hands right now, an act that you had commonly seen around England. All the aspects of his outfit looked as if he was a normal regular at this cafe. A normal, good-looking regular. You stifle a gulp, trying not to ogle and drool all over yourself at the sight of this man's Tom Hiddleston-like looks **[A/N: Pfffft…]**.

The blond stopped in his tracks, directly in front of your red-headed host, "Is this how you attract customers, Allistor?" he shook his head and sighed, "No wonder most of them are girls..."

Allistor scoffed, "At least my scones taste good!" He ignored the death glare that the blond shot him as he turned to you, "This 'ere's my wee brother, Arthur. He's a 'lil cranky when he ain't drink his tea right."

The blond, Arthur, punched his older brother's shoulder, "Shut it, bloody git! I'm only here because **(Country)** was supposed to meet me and your place was the only one with reservation slots that were free near his hotel."

At the sound of **(Country**)'s name, you immediately perked up, "Wait, you don't happen to be Britain's representative, do you?"

Arthur looked at you, a bushy eyebrow raised, "Yes. Why do you ask?"

"Ah, I came as a replacement. **(Country)** couldn't make it, so his boss made me come instead," you fumbled with your words a little, squirming under his steady gaze. "I'm his secretary," you added for good measure.

Arthur's thin lips then curved into a smile, a warm radiance filled the cold awkward atmosphere with a comfortable aura, "I see. I'm sorry about **(Country).** Oh, where are my manners? My name is Arthur, Britain's representative. It is an honour to meet you." He held out a hand, which you gladly took as you introduced yourself. You realise that his hand was much warmer, bigger than yours and it cradled your hand snugly. You blushed slightly at the contact, feeling slightly dizzy.

"I have already settled a place for us," Arthur said as he released your hand. You whimpered silently at the lost of contact, but kept a straight face, "Let me lead you there." With that, he reached out and placed a hand on your waist, just like Allistor had done, and led you away from the latter's protests for ignoring him.

Arthur held you close, as if he was afraid you would stray from his sights. You felt your cheeks grow hot and knew full well that you were blushing, but you couldn't help yourself. His chin grazed the top of your head often as he chatted with you about his background and how he was chosen as Britain's representative, smooth and clean in both his facial aspects and speech. At the same time, you could smell a faint cologne on him, a mix of mint and something sweet you couldn't put a finger on. Whatever it was, it made your mind cloud. It was so... reminiscent of an adolescent, yet masculine. A goofy smile crept across your face, but your thoughts were immediately pulled back by your sensible side. This was a trade meeting you were at! What were you doing fawning over this man? Worse still, it was at first sight! You shook your head to clear the dirty thoughts.

'Gah, just get this over and done with so you can go back to your hotel and (**Favourite Activity),**' you told yourself.

Arthur led you to an obviously occupied table, near a window at the back of the cafe. Said table was littered with papers and files. A lone half-filled teacup and saucer of clear glass sat in the middle of the table, next to a simple flower arrangement piece of white carnations and violets. A black laptop bag was thrown onto the chair nearest to the window's ledge, zip opened. Outside, you could see the backstreet busy with passers-by and hawkers selling all sorts of snacks and sweets. There was one on the far end selling tea and other sorts of colourful drinks as well. It was busy, but you could hardly hear anything. The walls must have been made soundproof.

You hear Arthur laugh, embarrassed, "Sorry about the mess. I was trying to find the right papers..." You feel his hand lift from your waist as he took a step in front of you and worked on stacking away the papers. You snap back to your senses as you walked over to a chair.

"No, its fine. I should have called you when I arrived," you said hesitantly, setting your **(Bag Type)** bag down on the chair next to you.

Arthur finished setting the papers aside, gazing up at you with his glistening emeralds through a curtain of gold, "I would not have recognised you and hung up straight away if you did that. It would not have been nice." He flashed another warm smile, and you felt your heart flutter a little, both at his theory and his soft grin.

Ignoring the feeling, you started to pull your chair back to sit. However, Arthur dropped his papers suddenly, went around and took hold of it, tapping against your hand lightly with his knuckles.

"Let me," he smiled again.

He adjusted your chair such that you sat comfortably, the way waiters do at formal restaurants. You couldn't help buteyes gaze up at him in utter disbelief. However, he only put on that same smile again as he patted your shoulder before going back around to his own seat, just opposite yours. You felt your insides melt a little and your little princess feelings rise. What a gentleman...

Just as Arthur sat down and Allistor served you a similar teacup with a maple-coloured liquid in it, stating that it was blackberry tea, the both of you finally got down to business. You felt a little over-dressed in your solid black business dress but Arthur did not seem to feel bothered, neither did he question it. In fact, he complimented you, stating that you looked good in it and it brought out your curves and body shape, to which you blushed so badly, you had to cover your face with your file. Arthur just snickered at your actions as he pulled out the relevant paperwork from his stack of papers. As you went on with the negotiations, you couldn't help but notice his style of speech and actions. He spoke in a polite, almost perfect formal English. He watched his words and never interrupted you while you were speaking. His emeralds were always held your own, rarely breaking eye contact, and he often nodded thoughtfully at your contributions. He smiled sympathetically when you stumbled a little on your sentences and seemed to ignore them instead of laughing at you the way **(Country)** does. You hated to admit it, but you were impressed and you felt yourself starting to fall for him. However, senses always kicked in and your brain tells you that you were (way) out of his league. All of his actions were based upon the way English men were brought up and were supposed to behave accordingly in meetings, as the stereotypes tell you. You sigh inwardly. You should never have too much wishful thinking.

Your discussion and settlements ended just as the sun was starting to set behind the taller buildings. Arthur had treated you to lunch and some of the small snacks from the backstreet and now you wanted nothing more than to go to bed and fall asleep. You look outside. The buildings were bathed in an orange light. The hawkers had long left and the bars you could see from opposite the front door were starting to flash their signs. People had already started walking in too. The cafe had long closed and was empty with the exception of yourself, Arthur and Allistor, who had been minding his work while the both of you were talking and was retreating back into the kitchen to wash the dishes. You stifled a yawn as Arthur filed his paperwork away. The latter chuckled at your actions and stood, coming over to stand by your side.

"Here, love," he took your hand in his. "Let me call a cab for you." He started to lift your hand, prompting you indirectly to stand.

This startled you a bit. Aside from the fact that he had called you 'love', he had offered to call a cab for you. You fidgeted uncomfortably. Arthur has already done so much for you, it seemed impolite to ask more of him.

"Ah, no. I'll call one myself. It's alright," you try to remove your hand from his.

However, the blond did not seem to buy it, gripping your fingers a little tighter, "I insist. I kept you here for too long." He helped you to your feet, "I apologise. I asked too many questions." He chuckled as he walked behind you to grab your bag.

You started to counter, "No, no. You treated me lunch and everything! That's more than enough-"

He turned then, the same warm, radiant smile that you had fallen for on his face, "I insist, **(Name)."**

You were caught off-guard. No, you cannot accept this kind of kindness. Just as you were about to protest further, you finally noticed that Arthur had already packed your things for you (single-handedly, for the one cupping your palm had never strayed) while you conversed with yourself. Now, he removed his hand from yours and laid it on your waist again, walking you out of the cafe. You let out a small whimper of exasperation, causing him to chuckle deeply, small vibrations brushing against the side of your head and his fresh, warm breath tickling your neck.

"It will be my pleasure to escort you back to the hotel, if you'd like me to," you hear Arthur say, his chin touching the top of your head once again.

Another wild blush crept onto your cheeks as you shook your head, guilty and embarrassed. You tried to say something, but all that came out of your mouth was a jumble of words. You had no idea what to do. Should you turn away, or just continue on and let him go through all the trouble for one unimportant secretary? You feel your mind haze, full of decisions and questions.

You had no time to decide, for before you knew it, Arthur had already led you outside. He had just finished making a call and was sliding his flip phone into his pocket. You looked at him, puzzled and bewildered.

"A cab is on its way," he informed you, smiling, "I told them your hotel's location so all you have to do is to step in and relax."

You dipped your head in response. "You shouldn't have," was all you could manage to say.

You couldn't see Arthur's face but you felt the breath of a sigh and a hand go to your shoulder. He patted it softly before running it down your arm, causing you to shiver and blush.

"It's my pleasure," his husky voice filled the tension, "I did keep you longer than I expected."

You steeled yourself and looked up. Arthur's green eyes blazed in the golden-orange hues, casting a ethereal glow around him. His hair seemed to shine like real gold and the light of the waning sun wove shimmering, delicate patterns across his face. He looked absolutely stunning. Your jaw dropped at the sight. No actor or singer could compare to this man's looks. You felt the temperature shoot up about ten degrees as you tried to advert your eyes away and calm yourself down. Your legs had become slightly weaker, for what reason you could not pinpoint, but it certainly was his fault. Arthur merely chuckled and smiled at you as he reached up and brushed a stray lock of **(Hair Colour) **hairbehind your ear. Warm fingertips grazed your ear, ticklish yet...inviting. You look back into his emerald orbs again. They seemed to smile at you and once again, you couldn't help yourself and smile back.

The sound of wheels braking tore your **(Eye Colour**) eyes from Arthur's. The yellow cab had arrived. A slight depression came to your heart when realisation dawned. It was time to part ways.

Arthur placed his hand on your waist again and walked you over to the cab door. He reached out to open it for you and placed your bag on the far seat, near the opposite window. He turned to face you once more, that same charming upwards quirk playing on his lips.

"It was an honour meeting you," Arthur breathed, almost a whisper. It sounded impossibly sexy coming from him. Never had someone been able to achieve the same seductive tone before, "I hope to see you again someday soon." He flashed another winsome smile.

"It was wonderful being here. Thank you for everything, Arthur," you smiled back.

He leaned forward and placed his lips on your forehead. A warm breath caressed your face lovingly as you felt a whisper soft kiss against your skin. Now, your blush really deepened. Your breath hitched and you felt time stand still. A rush of emotions clouded your mind once more. Your sensible side had been silenced. You made no move but to fall into the pleasing sensation, your eyes closing of their own accord. Warmth spread from your head to your toes invitingly. However, as soon as it happened, Arthur pulled back. You whimpered softly, your eyes opening again and coming into contact with Arthur's glistening eyes. The man smiled radiantly again.

"It has been my pleasure, Miss **(Name)**."

You averted your gaze again and hurriedly shuffled inside the cab. Arthur smiled at you for the final time and closed the door. The cab drove off, leaving the blond on the sidewalk outside the cafe as you watched from the back window. He was gazing after you, the same smile on his face. Just then, you saw Allistor walk up to him from behind and whisper something into his ear, causing the blond to do a double take and start pounding his fists on his older brother's head, if that was even possible as the red-head was much taller than him. They seemed to have started a commotion too, passers-by started looking on and one man even tried to break up the pseudo-fight. You chuckle slightly at the sight before the cab took a turn and you could no longer see the two brothers.

You turned back around and sat facing the back of the cab's worn leather seat. The cab driver was grinning widely at you via the rear view mirror as if hinting at something. You blush slightly at the man's twinkling eyes and shifted your gaze. To find something to distract you, you pulled out the cue card from your pocket. You find a few lines written in a darker blue ink below your own handwriting.  
_  
Come again soon. You're a much better negotiator than __**(Country).**__ I'll treat you to more delicious sponge cakes too._

There was a signature below it with a name you knew all too well.  
_  
With love from England  
Arthur Kirkland_

* * *

**That was horrible, wasn't it? I'm sorry that I didn't put much details about your trade discussion with Arthur, but its way too political and economical I just didn't want to bore you (I study Economics so I can really write some boring and confusing stuff down). I'll leave your conversation to your imaginations. Besides, I tried to make Arthur look strikingly handsome and gentlemanly. I mean, who doesn't love a Gentleman!England? Tell me if I succeeded in doing so, please?**

** Hope you liked my first ever Reader fic. Special thanks to English-illiterate for reading through and editing. Also for putting up with all my weird shenanigans and nonsense (although I might kill you for giving me the final draft so LATE!). Less than three you!**

** Please do not hesitate to leave a review. I appreciate any type of comment and criticism and I will try to implement them in my future work.**

** That's all from me! Happy (sort of late) Valentines' Day!**

** Have a nice day!**  
** ~nadiamirah**


End file.
